Cleve Wright returns for his second season in charge of the Miami women’s basketball program. Wright came to the RedHawks after a very successful 11-year run at Gannon that featured five NCAA Tournament appearances and two runs to the Elite Eight.

Wright holds a career coaching record of 241-122. His first Miami team finished 8-22 overall as the RedHawks adjusted to the new coaching style while competing in a very competitive Mid-American Conference. However, things are looking up as his incoming recruiting class was ranked second in the league by All Star Girls Report.

Wright won 70 percent of his games at Gannon (233-100), turning the Lady Knights into a Division II powerhouse. In his final season there in 2013, he led Gannon to a 31-5 record and an appearance in the NCAA Division II Elite Eight. The team finished the season ranked sixth in the country. Wright brought the Lady Knights to the NCAA Tournament in five of the his last seven seasons, with his best year coming in 2009-10 when he was named the NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year after guiding them to a 37-1 record and an NCAA Final Four appearance. He coached seven All-Americans and 37 all-conference selections.

Gannon’s women’s basketball program was extremely successful in the classroom as well under Wright. The Lady Knights were ranked among the top 25 teams in GPA in seven of his final eight years. In addition, 70 players earned all-conference academic honors.

Wright joined Gannon after a three-year stint (1999-2002) as the top assistant at Northwestern under head coach June Olkowski. While with the Wildcats, he was responsible for the development of the post players and was the team’s recruiting coordinator. His recruiting class in 2001 was rated as the 35th-best in the entire nation by All Star Girls Report, and he was voted as one of the top 25 assistant coaches in Division I in 2002.

Prior to his time at Northwestern, Wright spent two seasons as an assistant coach with Olkowski at Butler. He also spent four seasons (1993-97) as the head coach at Southwestern High School in Somerset, Ky., and was an assistant coach at Duke during the 1992-93 season.

Wright earned his bachelor’s degree from Berea College (Kentucky) in 1989. He competed on both the men’s basketball and track teams, while serving as a student assistant coach for the women’s team. He earned a master’s degree in athletic administration from Ball State in 1992, working as a graduate assistant coach there for two seasons (1990-92).

Wright has served as a NCAA Division II representative to the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Board of Directors since 2010. He has worked with the WBCA in various capacities the past eight years.

Wright is married to the former Diane McKinley. They have two daughters, Chloe (18) and Emma (15).

Cleve Wright's Year-by-Year Record

Season

School

Record

Finish

2002-03

Gannon

12-14

3rd - South Division GLIAC

2003-04

Gannon

18-11

2nd - South Division GLIAC

2004-05

Gannon

19-11

2nd - South Division GLIAC, GLIAC Tournament Runner-Up

2005-06

Gannon

14-15

3rd - South Division GLIAC, ranked 24th in country during season

2006-07

Gannon

25-6

NCAA Second Round, GLIAC Regular Season and South Division Champion, ranked 25th in country during season

2007-08

Gannon

16-12

2nd - South Division GLIAC, ranked 15th in country during season

2008-09

Gannon

26-5

NCAA Sweet Sixteen, 2nd - South Division GLIAC, ranked 20th in country during season

2009-10

Gannon

37-1

NCAA Final Four, PSAC Regular Season and Tournament Champions, ranked first in country during season

2010-11

Gannon

13-13

5th - West Division PSAC

2011-12

Gannon

22-7

NCAA Second Round, 2nd - West Division PSAC, ranked 18th in the country during season